Here’s the secret of “Orion” - the song never started, and has never ended. The fade in and out is just the part of the song we mere mortals are allowed to hear. It’s the infinite song, the perpetual metal jam. We’re just blessed to have been allowed to listen to eight and a half minutes of it.
This is the song that made me want to learn how to play bass. I've been listening to and playing Orion for 30 years now and I don't think I will ever stop hearing something fresh in it. It's truly a masterpiece. The ages of the guys when they wrote the Master album always blows my mind.
Haha, I was going to say something very similar. The song is running in to the mind of a mental patient for a few minutes, no beginning, no end. It's aggressive and melancholy by turn, the second movement sounds like when the antipsychotics kick in lol
The second guitar solo at the end is actually Cliff Burton on bass. He was the secret mastermind of the entire band. His obsession with Bach and the influence it had on his writing was undeniable.
Cliff loved progressive rock too- especially Jethro Tull but then he would have - it being classically influenced. Metallica is actually listed in the Bible of Prog and related bands-Prog Archives. They were a huge influence, if not the inventors of modern prog/metal
Cliff was a cellist prior to being a bassist. He understood music theory. I’ve always suspected this as the reason why Metallica’s first three albums were so melodic and well constructed.
@@maakwatherrie Kill em all wasn't really Cliff's material as he wasn't the bassist when most of those songs were written. It was also heavily influenced by Dave Mustaine as it sounds more like early Megadeth.
He mentioned the snare in this recording; interesting bit of trivia, that is the exact same snare drum heard on Def Leppard, Pyromania, Metallica were in Denmark recording and drummer Rick Allen was in the hospital in the UK, he had lost his arm in an auto accident. Lars got ahold of Rick and asked if he could use his snare drum, a Ludwig Black Beauty, Rick said he was honored and had the snare shipped overnight from the UK to Denmark for Lars. So the snare drum on Orion is the same snare drum on Photograph
I bought a Black Beauty snare in 1987 literally because of this story and this album in particular! Great sounding versatile snare. Rimshots sound massive on it!
I disagree about the concept of a song fading out means they didn’t know how to end the song. Many times it’s a very fitting ending. And I think it’s the best way to finish an atmospheric song like Orion. The mystery of the cosmos goes on.
Exactly. This is never an issue for them to end a song without a “fade to black”. This was done on purpose due to the fact it suited the fade in. Had to edit fade to black in there😂
I mean, that’s interesting and all, but I still kinda don’t like it. I guess I just like it when songs just have endings. Orion is still a great piece of music though.
Orion is a star constellation. The fadein-fadeout makes me feel like we are passing it on a journey through space. We approach it, see its parts, understand some of its beauty, then we move on as it shrinks to a point of light in the distance behind us.
Orion is a constellation!? I had no idea...I just thought he was the son of Poseidon and the Gorgon Euryale, was slain by a giant scorpion at the will of Gaia and made into a constellation by Zeus (this is why Orion and Scorpio are never in the sky at the same time)...
I was really really really into Metallica for about 10 years, and then my tastes just sorta wandered and I kinda stopped listening for about another 10 years. Nothing on purpose, was just gravitating toward other genres. Reading this comment just made me choke. Some things just never die.
I was recently watching an interview with Kirk Hammett, and he said that Orion was originally a middle part of To Live Is To Die, but then they developed it into a song of its own. Edit: here's the interview ruclips.net/video/bPy8YyUgxyA/видео.html
I miss my best friend. We covered Metallica. He was our drummer. He took his life. Other guitarist/singer moved other side of country. This was our favorite song to play. Broke down crying, it’s such a beautiful song. Many great memories playing all Metallica’s songs, but Orion, that was special.
Fuck, man. I’m so sorry to hear that. Thank you for sharing with us. Orion is definitely a special song. What were some of your other fav songs to play together? Metallica or any other band
@@DizzyDez613 dude you’re reply made me smile. Thank you for taking that time for a total stranger! We played almost everything from RTL to Garage Days. We crushed “One” and “Nothing Else Matters” at two different battles, winning for NEM. I have a rusty video of me playing NEM briefly at his Grave this year. I just miss him, man. Where would I be if he was still in my life? He’d be married, I’d be an uncle…his mother lost her older child to cancer, and a short while later her husband took his own life. She’s moved. I hope she’s well.
@@F3PIZZA Wow. Nailing One is no small feat. And that’s crazy you played NEM at his grave. Must have been tough. His poor Mom. Two children gone and then a spousal suicide. It’s pretty fucked up sometimes. I lost a friend recently as well (June 2020). We were best friends in high school, but drifted apart in our later teens. We had reconnected after like 2 decades. I saw him once. Then he died in a car accident. I’m lucky to have seen him that one time I guess.
@@opticFPV maybe he did, maybe he forgot to point it out as he was mentioning something else. Doesn't matter, many may miss it as this is a very unconventional sound even to this day. I know I missed it for a few *years* not just the first time I listened to this song.
@@opticFPV I doubt he missed it, it's not very substantial or really worth a mention. It's not like it was minute or longer where it would've been more remarkable.
"Do you like fade-outs?" On this piece, from my understanding of the material, it is integral. Cliff named this Orion after the eternal Hunter. And, like the constellation that bears his name, fades into & out of our skies with both the season and the hour. The 6/8 breakdown you loved so much... Imagine yourself stargazing on a cold, crisp January evening, marvelling at the sparkle of the heavens and the fog of your breath dancing in the air. Orion will dominate the southern sky. This song runs deep, and never says a word.
I like the fade in and fade out on Orion. It makes me feel like this is always playing, but we just experience that small part of it. There's a clip somewhere on RUclips where this song is set to video flying through space, it seems fitting, like this is the soundtrack to the universe.
@8:40 this is actually Cliff doing a bass solo. His bass solo work was so incredible he made it sound like a mid-tone guitar. And out of all the solos in this piece, it's the one that has the most heart - in my view.
But 8:22 was played by Kirk though, I mean when I watch them live he always plays that part so I assume it's also Kirk playing this on the record. Cause why would Kirk play James's solo live? Doesn't make any sense. Could just be that James wrote that part for Kirk cause sometimes they write riffs for one another. James's guitar also doesn't sound like that tbh.
As a classical composer you’d probably enjoy Metallica’s ‘Call of Ktulu’ with the San Francisco Symphony if you haven’t done it yet. This song fits so well with an orchestral arrangement.
If you want Doug to react to Ktulu, you have to make it a double header with Master of Puppets right behind. The sequence of these two songs is probably the best opening of all Metalica albums. But Battery is truly the crown jewel of S&M.
Agree friend I think when Cliff pass away Metallica did to. Look how gd first 3albums with him perfect. RTL MOP are probably best metal albums of all time
@Nathan Henneka Lars and James are Metallica. Cliff was an OK bassplayer and maybe contributed some cool ideas here and there, but 80% come from the brains of Lars and James.
@@kevinbrown5093 Strangely, while now I consider the self titled album to be excellent, back when it came out, we thought it was a massive departure from their sound and from the brutality that we knew and loved. As I get older I realize I can't expect to remain at the top of my game forever, but they were still fairly young when that album was produced. Subsequent albums, while musically acceptable, were seriously watered down. But hell, Load was a commercial success and I guess they deserved it after their vodka and soup days.
The song actually has a "proper" ending. Lars chose to fade it so it went into Damage Inc. like it does. Metallica 101. Lars is the guy who comes up with the track orders.
Fun fact Orion and Damage Inc. Were one song originally on their demo, they then split and became two esperate full songs, but that is why it fades so well into Damage Inc.
Lars is the guy who does most of their arrangement as well. People love to rip on his drumming skills, but there's no doubt Metallica would not be what it is today without him.
It also brings the piece full circle. I interpret it as Orion the hunter. The whole piece feels like a gazelle on the plains that comes to a watering hole and is hunted down by some apex predator.
@@georgegordian I agree with you about the "full circle" part. 👍🏼The metaphor I'd use, though, is more like two ships on the sea, or two cars on the road, coming closer and traveling within each others sight (and hearing) for a time. As if... the song started long before we started listening, and this is only a little piece of it that we are privileged enough to hear, and then, it fades from our hearing as we get more distant from each other, but the song will continue and sound totally different (but just as awesome!), and the next traveler they come into contact with will hear the next part of the masterpiece.
100%, yes, they're part of a continuum - I always think of the opening bass bit on Damage, Inc. as really part of Orion. When I first heard the Master of Puppets album, I listened to it on cassette, where there's no clear track delineation as with streaming, MP3, CD or even LP record. As someone who rarely listens to these songs out of sequence from the album's continuity, I retain that impression.
"Orion" sits in an incredible place in the flow of the album. It's almost difficult to appreciate its greatness upon first listen if it's not listened to in the context of the album. Master of Puppets is nearly a concept album, and "Orion" is the song that took the band into rare psychedelic rock territory. This is probably still their greatest album. RIP, Cliff.
Master, IMHO, absolutely IS Metallica's greatest album - in all regards! Musicality, lyrics, harmony, rhythm, song writing, performance, flow, structure, clarity, production, etc. It will live in Metal history as the album that took Metallica to greater heights, Black album or no. This is an album that was a major turning point in metal, as was Megadeth's Rust In Peace and Slayer's Reign In Blood. If I had only one album of Metallica's to ever listen to again, it would be Master of Puppets.
@@seanzigmund858 yes man! This is what separates MOP from Justice: the song structure and the production! The segues like on the song master of puppets, acoustic intro to battery, galloping intro riff to disposable heroes, the intro to damage inc had a dynamic & multidimensional sound that was absent to me on Justice. Although Justice was great, some songs still seemed like a demo state where they didn't reach full potential or frutiion. Something I know Cliff would be able to really change if he had his hands on them.
Yeah the pacing is nearly perfect on this album. The had a similar pacing-structure on Ride the Lightning, except they ended that one on the Epic Call of Ktulu, which totally worked for that album. Here the epic instrumental is followed by the thrash-blast that is Damage Inc, which is perfect for this album. The structure of both albums is the same though, and IT WORKS! ...And Justice For All also has the same structure, basically, but it's not as apparent since that entire album is so heady, heavy, and progressive. Fast aggressive thrasher - Title song - slow chuggy song - "Ballad" - Thrashy pick me up after "Ballad" - Heavier mid-tempo song - Thrasher / Epic instrumental - Epic instrumental / Thrasher. Only the two last songs switch around between the two albums, with ...And Justice reprising the Epic-Thrasher two last songs in the structure.
You should do another Cliff Burton masterpiece "(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth". I was floored that someone could play the bass the way he did back in the 80s
The studio version had the typical unrefined recording quality that Metallica really evolved Metal with... but if you review this track, you MUST do a follow up or a double commentary on the song in these two ways: 1) Evaluate the studio recording for us, as you usually do, and 2) View one of the early performances of it (eg.: ruclips.net/video/Y-G4PTysacI/видео.html). Cliff didn't just compose or perform the music, Cliff WAS the music. If they were contemporaries... imagine Cliff Burton and the late, great Jimmy Hendrix on stage together. Honestly, I'm not sure how critical a drummer would have been because they could've probably played a 4 hour improvised show, just the two of them. IMHO.
I recommend that too! Great instrumental with Cliff Burton's influences. And if you listen this, focus on what Cliff is doing in the background with the bass. Cool stuff.
A criminally overlooked thing in this masterpiece is how Lars Ulrich doesn't repeat the drum lines during the first part of the song. We're all focused on the guitars, but that part of the song, and the outro, are his to shine. Their instrumentals always have that structure, there's always a place for each of them to shine.
This is exactly why I've always enjoyed Lars' playing on these early albums. He does these little variations that keep listening for the drums interesting. Check it out on for example To Live Is To Die.
The way they start to layer this piece at 6:24 is just epic. I joined the Navy in 1989, and in Bootcamp, I had this song running through my head the whole time. It kept me sane.
I actually always wondered what Metallica might have become if Cliff had lived. I think it's pretty certain they would've gone in a more progressive direction, and perhaps would have been pioneers of a progressive metal movement, years ahead of bands like Opeth. Cliff started to really embrace classical music, exploring different progressions and almost creating symphonies in metal. Perhaps Cliff would've left the band to pursue other musical directions, since I think it was clear from the Black Album that James and Lars were pretty intent on a more mainstream metal sound. It's definitely an interesting "what if" debate to hold with any metalhead.
This is a great thought experiment. James was wanting to confront some demons in his life experience and write some more emotional and introspective songs, which I really respect. However, I simply don't like Metallica post-Justice. There are some great tracks on the black album, but they're not thrash Metallica and the album for me signals the beginning of the end for the band. Those great tracks (The Unforgiven is my favorite on that album) are kind of bittersweet. So bringing Cliff into the discussion and speculating on what he would have brought to their evolving sound is super interesting.
People forget Cliff’s range of music influence. I’m not so sure he would resist the direction they went into postJustice. As far as progressive, they went as far as they thought they could go, do that’s why they changed direction.
The Call of Ktulu, Orion, To Live is to Die It's basically a trilogy... incredibly orchestral in their composition. And while this was Cliff's last Album, "To Live is to Die" is composed of material cliff wrote prior to his death, performed by Jason newsted
The first band i ever saw inconcert was Metallica (opening for Ozzy). I was 14 years old. I was fortunate to see them with Cliff playing. Unfortunately he died about 6 months later.
I too saw that tour. It was metallicas master of puppets tour and Ozzy ultimate sun. Saw it in Charlotte. I was freshman in high school. Metallica kicked Ozzy’s ass and it was just them four standing in one spot banging out that music and banging their heads.
Doug, Cliff is one of the greatest bass players that has ever lived. The solos Including the first bass solo, and the second are very classical in the melody. The best song he wrote was impromptu on the spot Called anesthesia (pulling teeth) Its a one take bass solo that is incredible. The things that man can do with a bass.
@@KazeAkiyama there are live clips of him playing parts of Anesthesia pre-Metallica, it's one he'd been playing and messing with for years in a live situation.
He is simply one of the greats. He is the reason why I play bass. And an aria pro bass aswell. He is my idol. The way he writes on bass is just so incredible.
"Cliff is one of the greatest bass players that has ever lived. " I'm still curious why people say that. You have only ever herd him play in Metallica and sadly only on three albums before he died in the crash and a lot of hte iconic stuff came straight from his practice room. So did he really play better on those albums than you have ever heard anybody else play? Better than Claypool? Wooten? Bailey? Lemmy? Davey504? Newstead?
He's heard this song before. At 7:10 he sings the melody as it's happening. Also knows the names of the guys in the band. He was into metal before becoming a composer, 99% sure
Id love to be able to unwatch and unlisten to my most favourite and life changing media, so i could experience them for the first t ime again. Nothing better than experiencing some art that becomes your love for the first time. I love those moments.
I’ve always had the impression in my imagination that the fade in and out is distance closing in and opening up. I imagine an interstellar journey through the stars when I hear this song.
I've always felt with this song that the fade in/out is sort of like the tide coming in and then going back out, and an actual beginning or ending would completely break the overall feel of the piece.
I agree with that sentiment. It wouldn't work all the time, but for a song as strong as this one, it makes it feel like the song never ends and just always exists out there in the ether....like the song is just passing us by.
@@LS1Formula That’s exactly it for me, like if it’s a sound continuum to which a window is opened and then shut down again slowly (even if it doesn’t end exactly like it started, bu that’s the feeling).
As a classical composer, you’ll find it interesting that one of Cliff Burton’s biggest influences was Bach. In fact, the intro to “Damage, Inc.” is supposed to be based on Bach’s “Come, Sweet Death.”
I'd say inspired. I remember the interview where Kirk said that Cliff showed him the intro and said 'that is inspired by Come sweet death by Bach'. Kirk listened to Bachs song and replied to Cliff that it didn't sound like that. Cliff replied, smiling 'That's great'
My big brother loved Puppets as much as I do, he also passed (41yrs, I was 36). We also saw Metallica live together, twice. Great memories for sure. Also YNWA KonmaN - go reds!
Damn, you're killin me. My youngest brother passed at 39 and we also spent our lives at many shows including Metallica. His first was Ozzy at 13, I was 21. I raised him right 🤘
@@thedreamer4846 Thank you...I did not check in utube for a while & was somewhat worried about responses but yours made me smile with a tear. You know the pain too, I hear ya pal, even if you were a UTD fan I hear ya. Thanks for taking the time to reach out, appreciate it. It means a lot to know I am not alone & I hope you know it to. Grief is a bugger eh?
@@deanmays7133 Wow, me & my Bro 1st gig was Ozzy supporting DIO in Dublin in early '80's - you raised him right for sure. Real life & shit happenes but we always have that gig with our brothers. Nice to share that thought, perhaps both of 'em are rocking together, along with the dreamers bro & others who care to Rock! (I would like to think I will when my time comes) Peace
@Dean Mays @KonmaN YNWA - I feel your pain my friends, we share in something undeniably tragic and impossible to get over. I have learned to embrace the pain. It stays with me, and can strangely bring me comfort now. We never argued in our lives - not even once! Not even as kids! I'm just incredibly lucky to have had a bro like him.
The fade in, especially for the drums is so iconic for me and ive never heard anything like it. The fade out has always left me wanting and I believe it was absolutely intentional..no real resolve. Genius composition.
@@everythingoutdoors4079 now now, we all are not as lucky as you and I in having heard this for years. I'm sure he's heard beautiful stuff he can't believe WE haven't heard of, you know? ☺️
Funny you say that. Doug said he couldn't tell who was playing lead guitar during the baroque lilting part in the middle. In the original studio version of this song, all three of those guitar parts are bass guitar, each played by Cliff, then layered. As a guitarist, I wondered for a long time how the tone of the guitars had that odd timbre. Turns out, if you hit those high notes on a bass, it sounds quite like the song. If you listen closely, you can hear James and Kirk come back in for the second guitar solo, effectively replacing the layered bass lines.
@@timothyjames3332 That's really interesting, they play it live with guitars so I always assumed... but I can hear it now. So for the "solos" then (according to the time in this video) I hear: 3:47 - Bass - Cliff 5:16 - Guitar - Kirk 6:22 - Layered harmonized bass - Cliff 8:22 - Guitar - Possibly James - kinda sounds like a James solo but I'm not sure 8:40 - Bass - Cliff 9:06 - Guitar - Kirk
@@tubeannoyYour timestamps are exactly what my ears are telling me, too. The only thing you presented that I take issue with is the "James solo". Usually when there's a rhythm guitar going, that's what Hetfield is playing. We could speculate about left/right channel until the end of time, but that speculation wouldn't have much merit, as one could simply turn their headphones around and be right. On technique, James' lead chops tend to be based around the chord structure, and don't stray too far from being able to hop back into the rhythm. People tend to label slower guitar solos as Hetfield's, but I think that's more often not the case. Did James write and record solos in Orion? I don't know, maybe. My suspicion is that it's all Kirk, though.
@@timothyjames3332 Yes. On the early albums they would specifically list when James took a solo because it was so rare at the time. On MoP he's credited with two: One on the title track and one on "Orion." I was always under the impression that James played the harmony parts, and I've read interviews where he's taken credit for them. For what it's worth, though, the official tab book shows three guitar parts, one of which is a good bit lower than the other two. Obviously tab books should be taken with the proverbial grain of salt, but it's possible that Cliff played the low part and James played the higher parts. Otherwise @tubeannoy's analysis sounds right to me. I thought 8:22 was Kirk at first, but I could be wrong.
Everytime me and my brother drive by the place in Sweden where he died we stop and pay our respect to the guy. Once we listened to this track while going in to the parking spot and timed it perfectly to the beginning of the calm part. Very effective
The fade-in is cool, and yeah, the fade-out is probably because they just weren't sure how to end the song, but also the fade-out makes a great transition into Damage, Inc. so if you hear them both in order it does sound pretty cool
To me, the song begins with the melodic bass part in the middle (the 6/8 F#, A, E melodic thing). The "end" would naturally be the part that winds down right before that. We fade in to and out of the middle of the song, as it were.
Now you have to do "To Live is to Die", If I remember properly, Cliff wrote the main riff right before he died, and then the band took it and wrote everything around it. Also insturmental, similar feel, different pace and tempo.
I'd recommend watching Andriy Vasylenko's video about To Live is To Die, because actually it seems likely that Cliff didn't write any of the music of the song, and more likely came up with the wording of the spoken word quote.
@@IveGotAMatch im getting my info from the VH1 behind the music featuring metallica, they talked about cliff and that main riff saying he wrote it, if my memory serves me correctly.
Thank you for taking the time to rock out to Orion. As others have already stated - it’s a masterpiece. My favorite Metallica song. It never gets old and it can’t ever be played loud enough. Cliff Burton was a genius. I often wonder how the future Metallica albums made without his influence would have sounded with him. No offense to Jason or Robert. You guys rock. But….Cliff was a different kind of special.
Metallica's Master of Puppets was the first metal album ever inducted into the Library of Congress. It is so good it even gives classical composers the "metal face."
There you see I like that and I thought they're Canadian or were stopped by their customs and didn't come to Eindhoven dynamo open air that year hahaaa long ago he, gdayyy
Haven't watched yet, but really looking to your reaction to Cliff's solo. Gets me in the feels every time. Edit after viewing: DUDE! You talked through the bas solo and didn't even notice it! Oh man, sad times. The bass solo and middle section are what people love about this tune, but mostly, it's the bass solo. Give it another listen.
@Monte Maxwell MoP will always be my favorite music album of all time, both musically and for personal reasons. I will say that objectively RTL is their best, as it has the best variety (heavy, fast, and commercial friendly)
Man, I second this so hard. To Live is To Die is my top instrumental just because of the emotions that were put into the song . You can definitely feel them.
The isolated bass track of this is amazing on its own. You pick up on things in the complete track after listening to it. Not gonna spoil it for anyone, but it's awesome.
I like this "8D" version of Orion that's on youtube, it splits the instruments and makes them spin around your head separately if that makes sense. It allows you to focus on the bass without having to miss out on the rest of the track.
Right, the triplets after the intro in the E/G backwards power chord pump part, Cliff hits the triplet every time, James doubles it every fourth time, all of the things you can't really hear clearly on the album
My favorite Metallica song. Call of Ktulu maybe a better song, but I think this is a fan favorite because it features Cliff right before the accident. Especially at 3:47 and 8:41 RIP Cliff
Just wanted to say I really appreciate that you truly listen to the music and understand what you're hearing. Most RUclips reactions are just people pausing the music to shout "yeah this is great!" To make us metal lovers hit the like button. Great job man!
@@terran236 Its possible to get a pseudo perfect pitch. Learn one pitch instinctually, like a C note or something, and then think relative to that note. Its difficult, but it can be done.
To help understand chord structure you can write down the riffs like r1, r2 , r2a, bridge, outro, solo etc and put slow mid fast next to them. it has helped me get a grasp of what bands are doing. I have seen a full university students breakdown of metallicas master of puppets album i think i searched for metallica's music analysis.
Makes me chuckle, I’ve been listening to this song close to my my entire life. Not sure how many hundreds of times I’ve listened to the sound start to finish. Kinda cool people are still discovering this song and Metallica
Im just introduced myself to metal and from a few friends at the start of the summer. Just found this song about a month ago. Its crazy entering this new genre. Still have lots to discover
@@jdr-gd8kg Oh i envy you the discovery, Metallica opened a new world for me when i picked up Ride the lightning in 1984, they have been with me through good times and bad ever since. I wish you all the best in your journey.
I listened to Metallica once in a while, but there was a phase in which I used to listened to metal music every day like 10 years ago, I even learned I few Metallica songs in my guitar back in the day
This is Cliffs magnum opus, his bass solos and grooves on this piece is of legend. The waltz in the middle is genius. It’s pieces like this that separates Metallica from It’s contemporaries.
Me too man. It made Orion my favorite constellation. Every time I look up to the stars and see it, this tunes rings in my head... God bless Cliff Burton!
Is it that old ??? I'm just 21 years old and I'm hearing this for the first time. Ain't my favorite though, I'm not that into Metal, mostly just Rock/hard rock
I was fortunate to see Cliff with the band in concert. He was the last of the denim and leather metal, before everything turned to emo and spandex. He’s up there shredding with Randy and Dimebag now.
@@damianb2374 lol James himself says it on one occasion on live concert in early 80s "...and the fucking spandex ..we hate em". But yeah they all wore before cliff joined.
I think Orion works best within the progression of the album. It tends to fall sort out of context. In fact Master of puppets needs to be listened to start to finish..... in my opinion! Love your videos! 🔥❤🔥
Some facts about the songs: the intro is Cliff's with different layers of bass tracks and maybe an electric organ. The main riff is James' over Cliff's chord progression. The whole middle part is composed by Cliff but the guitars are recorded by James. There's a guitar solo and a bass solo in the interlude, the guitar one is probably James'. The other two solos are Kirk's. Great video
@@ionehkontehdiabo7627 in the middle section there are two solos. The first one is in F#m and it's played in guitar. The solo right after it is in E minor and starts with a huge bend. There are several harmonizations during that short solo. That's Cliff's solo. When it ends we go back to heavy guitars and a new solo by Kirk Hammett starts
To me this piece of music is like a journey in space towards Orion and it needs the climax of arriving there. The fade out gives the feeling that the journey continues and the listener never reaches Orion during the song. I would like it to have more epic ending like in Call of Kthulu to have the feeling that now I'm in the Orion and this is the end.
What is also amazing is they were in their early 20s when making this album. Master of Puppets is the first metal album to be put into the national recording registry/Library of Congress...
Just wanna share this. When I was a kid learning how to play the guitar, Metallica was my greatest influence. Just hearing the harmonies on guitars really amazed me. With that said, when I saw their live version of Orion with Rob playing the bass, at the 8:41 mark of this video, that was the only time I knew that it was a BASS solo. LOL! It took me decades before knowing that it was a bass solo. Hahaha! I had to listen to the studio version again, and it is a bass solo. :) Metallica was not just a metal band, they were already geniuses during their time.
Doug, in addition to the obvious guitar, a more than good portion of the soloing you are hearing in this song is actually Cliff on bass. If you’ve never seen video of them live he plays the bass like a virtuoso guitarist.
The thing I find the most incredible about this album, and indeed elements of the two Metallica albums before it, is just how young they were when they wrote these songs. They were barely out of their teens for 'MoP'. You would expect this kind of songwriting and musicianship from much more mature individuals, but not drunken adolescents, which is effectively what they were at the time. It is telling that they never quite replicated these songs again as they aged - Cliff must have been the key that enabled them to transcend musical greatness.
> "It is telling that they never quite replicated these songs again as they aged" They didn't keep trying though. Only on And Justice For All (1988, the next album after MoP) and maybe Death Magnetic (2008). Other than that, they weren't even trying to make the same kind of music as in Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets in the first place. IMO they failed at it. AJFA is somewhat worse, and Death Magnetic far worse. I'm glad they gave up on that, because i enjoy the black album and Hardwired. I wonder how Metallica's style would evolve over the decades with Cliff Burton. Perhaps it would change considerably but still mantaining the same kind of greatness seen in RtL and MoP. Probably in a far better way, considering the experience and composing skill he would accumulate over time.
@@leandrog2785 It is certainly interesting to imagine how different Metallica would have been had Cliff lived. IMHO, they would have still grown musically and explored different avenues, but Cliff would have brought to it the "X factor" that has been sadly missing since he passed. I also recall reading an interview many years ago with one of Cliff's close friends, who claimed that Cliff harboured desires to explore different musical genres, and wouldn't necessarily have remained with Metallica long term. Certainly poses some interesting questions.
@@nestorramirez8086 Well if you want to be pedantic, I was broadly referring to the first three albums. Also MoP may have been released in 1986, but many of the songs were written earlier. I guess it depends whether you're a glass half full or empty guy, but to me, early 20s is barely out of your teens.
whoever you are, whatever your musical background is, when you listen to this song for he first time, it just sounds good, i would say great. That is it's power.
Cliff was their "John Lennon". He did the bass solo at @8:40 and it's one of my favorites. Describing this as lovely is on point! You are totally right! Fade in's and fade out's add a real mellow start and finish to the piece, at least in my mind :)
The fade in & out actually fits into structure & pacing of the album something lost in digital age. Each song is a link in a chain and how the connect together can be musical too. On previous albums Cliff would just show Kirk what to play for harmonies, luckily on this album Cliff showed Kirk how to figure out the harmonies himself. Cliff lives on in their music!
Cliff Burton was the only member of Metallica with classical music training, and he also had an extremely broad music taste, also having an immense appreciation for country music. All of this of course made its way into his compositions for Metallica.
I think that the most amazing part about this song is that Metallica made a 8 minute and a half song so complete that it doesn't sound over-dragged. That's why Master of Puppets is their best album. And regarding the production, the bass was turned down a lot on AJFA where the song Blackened is.
There is practically no bass throughout AJFA as a whole, even though Jason Newsted wrote “blackened” The interesting part is the audio engineer in charge of production was overridden by Lars and blames Lars entirely on the lack of bass throughout the album. Many theorize it as a tribute from Lars and James to Cliff not to include almost any bass in the album. It’s a damn shame though, because the And Justice For Jason album on yt proves exactly why it needs to be added back in.
Yeah, Justice sounds so 'tinny'. But there are some of its tracks on which that works well with Lars's drums. Makes his hits come off like nails being driven into hardwood.
@@seanruddy1272 I really liked and justice for Jason, and the AJFA version put out by The Bass Channel but I settled on this “remaster” as my favorite bc it brought back that bass and punched up the drums in the right places ruclips.net/video/N-OArgBcBRk/видео.html
@@teamLeon928 holy shit you’ve just opened my eyes to what is the best mix of AJFA. THANK YOU! As a bass player I’ve always wanted bass to be heard in this album, and not just some shitty attempt at what it could have possibly sounded like, this sounds like it was performed by Jason himself. Thank you so much! From one metal fan to another I appreciate this a ton.
@@seanruddy1272 read the description on the video. A lot of the tracks are Jason’s with a couple being from a “mysterious source” (my words not his 😂). He describes what he did pretty well with pulling up Jason’s bass bc James essentially is playing in the bass channel. But yeah, it’s by far my favorite to say the least
Orion is best appreciated in the context of the whole album. The next song “Damage, inc.” fades in with softly distorted bass lines from Cliff, then into a crescendo, right into hard, staccato power to finish the album with a song that is fast, heavy, and in your face. Some commenters’ interpretations of Orion made me think of the song in a new way! The ability to infinitely loop this song, similar to the infinity of space and the universe, or that we approach, see, and leave the constellation Orion and that’s what the song demonstrates. It’s fascinating! One of my favorites to play on guitar.
about the fadeouts - to me it is like a cosmic journey where the spaceship is travelling to the far cosmos and it approaches the Orion, then the melancholic middle is being in the middle of the constellation, then the solos are coming up like being closer to the star and seeing all that violent power. then finally the spaceship travels further, and the Orion fades away... that's my take on it
The fade out on Orion is like the curtain closing on one scene in a play, to create drama as Damage Incorporated blasts off. Damage Inc is one of my favorites for sure.
The fade in/fade out is like a militant march. It started before you, came, kicked your ass, rolled right over you, and continues until it fades off in the distance with the same power it started with.
Regarding the fade in and fade out, I usually feel the same, but there is something special about this song. The fade in and the fade out are done over the same motif, that encases the middle section, creating for me an "endless loop" feeling that certainly resonates with the name of the song and the deep, astral, introspective feelings I get from listening to it. Orion, both as a constellation and as a mythological figure, have this "eternal cicle" and "appear and disappear" motifs. For me, the fading in and out are meant to "loop" the song into representing this.
Here’s the secret of “Orion” - the song never started, and has never ended. The fade in and out is just the part of the song we mere mortals are allowed to hear. It’s the infinite song, the perpetual metal jam. We’re just blessed to have been allowed to listen to eight and a half minutes of it.
That, and the fact that it was supposed to take place in the middle of sanitarium. What a country!
This is 100% correct my fiance literally just said that then we saw your comment a few minutes later.
This is the song that made me want to learn how to play bass. I've been listening to and playing Orion for 30 years now and I don't think I will ever stop hearing something fresh in it. It's truly a masterpiece. The ages of the guys when they wrote the Master album always blows my mind.
I had an NDE and was granted 6 additional minutes
Haha, I was going to say something very similar. The song is running in to the mind of a mental patient for a few minutes, no beginning, no end. It's aggressive and melancholy by turn, the second movement sounds like when the antipsychotics kick in lol
The Call of Ktulu is another Metallica classic to cover Doug.
I bet he'd love this one
@@tristramcoffin926 I agree. I've always viewed it as miles ahead of Orion
To live is to die
The original s&m version.
Yes - the next Metallica instrumental to do. Another masterpiece with Cliff on bass. Cheers!
The second guitar solo at the end is actually Cliff Burton on bass. He was the secret mastermind of the entire band. His obsession with Bach and the influence it had on his writing was undeniable.
Knew that's who did it. Jason never went that high up on the fret board
@@adambee2224 You should listen to My friend of misery.
Cliff loved progressive rock too- especially Jethro Tull but then he would have - it being classically influenced. Metallica is actually listed in the Bible of Prog and related bands-Prog Archives. They were a huge influence, if not the inventors of modern prog/metal
So is the first solo at the beginning
Search: Cliff isolated bass Orion. Mind blown.
In case you weren't aware, the solo from 8:40 - 9:00 is a bass solo. Cliff was a freakin God.
I knew but thanks bro, he was a god
How dare this mortal speak about drums during cliff's solo
@@The_Great_Letter_E for real
Written by Kirk
@@amber13666 no it was not
This is not a reaction... this is a masterclass interpretation of a masterpiece.
Yeah, not a reaction, he's heard this before. Seems to me he was into metal before going classical
@@dorianvaz7572 he s sleeping !
@Revenge Class no way
@Revenge Class go back to sleep
@Revenge Class ???
Cliff was a cellist prior to being a bassist. He understood music theory. I’ve always suspected this as the reason why Metallica’s first three albums were so melodic and well constructed.
Good observation. That makes total sense.
Kill m all wasn't realy melodic
@@maakwatherrie Kill em all wasn't really Cliff's material as he wasn't the bassist when most of those songs were written. It was also heavily influenced by Dave Mustaine as it sounds more like early Megadeth.
Well said. i Saw Metallica live gig in 1990 in Italy . I am a gret fan of them , master of Puppets is a masterpiece of music
Cliff had no input on kill em all. But you can hear the difference between KEA and RTL/MOP
He mentioned the snare in this recording; interesting bit of trivia, that is the exact same snare drum heard on Def Leppard, Pyromania, Metallica were in Denmark recording and drummer Rick Allen was in the hospital in the UK, he had lost his arm in an auto accident. Lars got ahold of Rick and asked if he could use his snare drum, a Ludwig Black Beauty, Rick said he was honored and had the snare shipped overnight from the UK to Denmark for Lars. So the snare drum on Orion is the same snare drum on Photograph
Interesting, never heard that before.
That's a very interesting piece of trivia. I would not have guessed those two songs could be linked together like that.
Brilliant bit of trivia! Love it :)
I bought a Black Beauty snare in 1987 literally because of this story and this album in particular! Great sounding versatile snare. Rimshots sound massive on it!
Wow that's really cool!
I disagree about the concept of a song fading out means they didn’t know how to end the song. Many times it’s a very fitting ending. And I think it’s the best way to finish an atmospheric song like Orion. The mystery of the cosmos goes on.
Exactly. This is never an issue for them to end a song without a “fade to black”. This was done on purpose due to the fact it suited the fade in. Had to edit fade to black in there😂
I think it was done in purpose 'cause it blends so well with the brutal beginning of Damage Inc, the song after Orion on the album....
I mean, that’s interesting and all, but I still kinda don’t like it. I guess I just like it when songs just have endings. Orion is still a great piece of music though.
@@patoubel Yes because people used to listen to entire albums and such things were considered.
The fade out is meant to match the fade in at the beginning. The song is infinite. Put it on a loop.
Orion is a star constellation. The fadein-fadeout makes me feel like we are passing it on a journey through space. We approach it, see its parts, understand some of its beauty, then we move on as it shrinks to a point of light in the distance behind us.
...hmm, in this interpretation i kinda like those effects ...
Kinda like, life is traveling the unknown road, you never fully understand it, but you get a glance of greater things.
Perfect interpretation of Orion. 🤘🏻
Orion is a constellation!? I had no idea...I just thought he was the son of Poseidon and the Gorgon Euryale, was slain by a giant scorpion at the will of Gaia and made into a constellation by Zeus (this is why Orion and Scorpio are never in the sky at the same time)...
😍
"To Live is to Die" another Metallica masterpiece.
That song brings tears to my eyes...it's so heart wrenching.
The clean interlude makes me cry everytime....
I was really really really into Metallica for about 10 years, and then my tastes just sorta wandered and I kinda stopped listening for about another 10 years. Nothing on purpose, was just gravitating toward other genres.
Reading this comment just made me choke. Some things just never die.
I was gonna say, another cliff classic...
I was recently watching an interview with Kirk Hammett, and he said that Orion was originally a middle part of To Live Is To Die, but then they developed it into a song of its own.
Edit: here's the interview ruclips.net/video/bPy8YyUgxyA/видео.html
I miss my best friend. We covered Metallica. He was our drummer. He took his life. Other guitarist/singer moved other side of country. This was our favorite song to play. Broke down crying, it’s such a beautiful song. Many great memories playing all Metallica’s songs, but Orion, that was special.
Hope you are recovering from your loss mate
Fuck, man. I’m so sorry to hear that. Thank you for sharing with us. Orion is definitely a special song. What were some of your other fav songs to play together? Metallica or any other band
@@DizzyDez613 dude you’re reply made me smile. Thank you for taking that time for a total stranger! We played almost everything from RTL to Garage Days. We crushed “One” and “Nothing Else Matters” at two different battles, winning for NEM. I have a rusty video of me playing NEM briefly at his Grave this year. I just miss him, man. Where would I be if he was still in my life? He’d be married, I’d be an uncle…his mother lost her older child to cancer, and a short while later her husband took his own life. She’s moved. I hope she’s well.
@@F3PIZZA Wow. Nailing One is no small feat. And that’s crazy you played NEM at his grave. Must have been tough. His poor Mom. Two children gone and then a spousal suicide. It’s pretty fucked up sometimes.
I lost a friend recently as well (June 2020). We were best friends in high school, but drifted apart in our later teens. We had reconnected after like 2 decades. I saw him once. Then he died in a car accident. I’m lucky to have seen him that one time I guess.
this is our favorite song to play too, i understand what you are saying
Doug, you gave the metal "stink face" look. An true sign of metal appreciation.
5:27 haha!
Edit: 6:23 actually!
For those who may not have noticed, the solo starting at 8:41 is a bass solo. RIP Cliff
you mean Doug
Yup, I think he missed it lol
@@opticFPV maybe he did, maybe he forgot to point it out as he was mentioning something else. Doesn't matter, many may miss it as this is a very unconventional sound even to this day. I know I missed it for a few *years* not just the first time I listened to this song.
@@opticFPV I doubt he missed it, it's not very substantial or really worth a mention. It's not like it was minute or longer where it would've been more remarkable.
He missed the bass solo while talking about drums 🤣
"Do you like fade-outs?"
On this piece, from my understanding of the material, it is integral.
Cliff named this Orion after the eternal Hunter. And, like the constellation that bears his name, fades into & out of our skies with both the season and the hour.
The 6/8 breakdown you loved so much...
Imagine yourself stargazing on a cold, crisp January evening, marvelling at the sparkle of the heavens and the fog of your breath dancing in the air. Orion will dominate the southern sky.
This song runs deep, and never says a word.
Said exactly how I would especially the stargazing part.
James has had a guitar made out of some wood that was part of the garage where they wrote the album and Cliff is represented on it as Orion.
And the fade-out from Orion into the whale sounds Cliff makes at the beginning of Damage, Inc wouldn't work any other way.
Cliff was a genious, I don't know if he had any formal classical music background, but they say he used to listen to a lot of baroque music.
Cliff couldnt have said it better. Cheers.
35 years later and this song still gives me goosebumps.
Same here bro.
the only time i get the goosebumps from it is when it's played on vinyl.
it gives me goosebumps it´s so old
+1 ALL THE TIME
Absolutely!!! It always will.
The song that makes grown men cry... Orion takes you places... RIP Cliff.
THIS
Song is a masterpiece
Cliff Burton's masterpiece. Metallica has so many killer songs it stretches the definition of "masterpiece." Can you have 10 masterpieces?
That whole album is a masterpiece! I can only imagine the music he would be making today if he was still alive! Gone way too soon...
You guys are serious?
@@Purplexi Yeah. Do not argue about taste. Be a gourmand and everything is fine! :D
Really my favorite Metallica song. I love it so much!
I like the fade in and fade out on Orion. It makes me feel like this is always playing, but we just experience that small part of it. There's a clip somewhere on RUclips where this song is set to video flying through space, it seems fitting, like this is the soundtrack to the universe.
I know that video. It's really great.
I like that. I always imagined it like a sort of stellar hurricane, with the chill part in the middle being the eye of the storm.
I came here to say the exact same thing but you beat me to it! I wonder if that was their intention when they wrote it.
The fade at the start is perfect, because the Bass lead the path, Orion Live performance has a no Fade ending, indeed. No complain in fade at studio.
Could you find and post the link to this vid please. 🙏🤘🏻
@8:40 this is actually Cliff doing a bass solo. His bass solo work was so incredible he made it sound like a mid-tone guitar. And out of all the solos in this piece, it's the one that has the most heart - in my view.
Badass
May Cliff rest in person 😔
Sick
@My Dixie Wrecked Wow, I had no idea Anesthesia was part of Orion
@My Dixie Wrecked Yeah no shit Sherlock, the original comment was talking about the solos in Orion, which is why your reply is stupid
Timestamps for solos:
5:22 Kirk
8:22 James
8:40 Cliff (Playing a part written by Kirk for guitar actually)
9:08 Kirk
Did James write that part?? It’s my favorite part of this song
@@calvinsomers1197 yes he did!
@@calvinsomers1197 James doesn't get enough credit for his guitar work.
@@calvinsomers1197 Yeah its James solo but im pretty sure Kirk plays that solo whenever they play Orion live, idk why.
But 8:22 was played by Kirk though, I mean when I watch them live he always plays that part so I assume it's also Kirk playing this on the record. Cause why would Kirk play James's solo live? Doesn't make any sense. Could just be that James wrote that part for Kirk cause sometimes they write riffs for one another. James's guitar also doesn't sound like that tbh.
As a classical composer you’d probably enjoy Metallica’s ‘Call of Ktulu’ with the San Francisco Symphony if you haven’t done it yet. This song fits so well with an orchestral arrangement.
Ktulu would be a great song, but I think the studio version might be better. Either way, it'd be good.
@@zddoodah agree
If you want Doug to react to Ktulu, you have to make it a double header with Master of Puppets right behind. The sequence of these two songs is probably the best opening of all Metalica albums.
But Battery is truly the crown jewel of S&M.
Agree. 👍🏻🤘🤘
@@miltocteixeira I agree with your agreement if you agree that your agreement agrees with my agreement.
Cliff was a special dude. Metallica was never the same without him. Still good, but never the same.
Agree friend I think when Cliff pass away Metallica did to. Look how gd first 3albums with him perfect. RTL MOP are probably best metal albums of all time
@Nathan Henneka Lars and James are Metallica. Cliff was an OK bassplayer and maybe contributed some cool ideas here and there, but 80% come from the brains of Lars and James.
@@pietdijkman1980 incorrect. Burton gave them tbeir musicality. And their soul. Neither of which exists any more.
I totally agree....I think the black album wouldn’t have been made and I think Metallica would’ve mastered thrash further ...
@@kevinbrown5093 Strangely, while now I consider the self titled album to be excellent, back when it came out, we thought it was a massive departure from their sound and from the brutality that we knew and loved. As I get older I realize I can't expect to remain at the top of my game forever, but they were still fairly young when that album was produced. Subsequent albums, while musically acceptable, were seriously watered down. But hell, Load was a commercial success and I guess they deserved it after their vodka and soup days.
Cliff's spirit lives in this track...... and "To Live is To Die" is a fantastic tribute to him
he wrote that
Needs to react to that one
Yes ineed!!
The song actually has a "proper" ending. Lars chose to fade it so it went into Damage Inc. like it does.
Metallica 101. Lars is the guy who comes up with the track orders.
Interesting.
Fun fact Orion and Damage Inc. Were one song originally on their demo, they then split and became two esperate full songs, but that is why it fades so well into Damage Inc.
Lars is the guy who does most of their arrangement as well. People love to rip on his drumming skills, but there's no doubt Metallica would not be what it is today without him.
And song arrangement/structure.
@@paytonmacdonald1409 It was originally Orion and Sanitarium which were splitted.
The "Fade out" at the end of "Orion" prepares you for the next album song: "Damage Inc." wich starts with an fantastic intro from silence
It also brings the piece full circle. I interpret it as Orion the hunter. The whole piece feels like a gazelle on the plains that comes to a watering hole and is hunted down by some apex predator.
Into Eternity does something similar like this ruclips.net/video/IQbK0vrIlaI/видео.html
@@Refr619 One of Ku favorite songs by them. Buried in Oblivion is their best album in my opinion, their masterpiece.
@@georgegordian I agree with you about the "full circle" part. 👍🏼The metaphor I'd use, though, is more like two ships on the sea, or two cars on the road, coming closer and traveling within each others sight (and hearing) for a time.
As if... the song started long before we started listening, and this is only a little piece of it that we are privileged enough to hear, and then, it fades from our hearing as we get more distant from each other, but the song will continue and sound totally different (but just as awesome!), and the next traveler they come into contact with will hear the next part of the masterpiece.
100%, yes, they're part of a continuum - I always think of the opening bass bit on Damage, Inc. as really part of Orion. When I first heard the Master of Puppets album, I listened to it on cassette, where there's no clear track delineation as with streaming, MP3, CD or even LP record. As someone who rarely listens to these songs out of sequence from the album's continuity, I retain that impression.
"Orion" sits in an incredible place in the flow of the album. It's almost difficult to appreciate its greatness upon first listen if it's not listened to in the context of the album. Master of Puppets is nearly a concept album, and "Orion" is the song that took the band into rare psychedelic rock territory. This is probably still their greatest album. RIP, Cliff.
Master, IMHO, absolutely IS Metallica's greatest album - in all regards! Musicality, lyrics, harmony, rhythm, song writing, performance, flow, structure, clarity, production, etc. It will live in Metal history as the album that took Metallica to greater heights, Black album or no. This is an album that was a major turning point in metal, as was Megadeth's Rust In Peace and Slayer's Reign In Blood. If I had only one album of Metallica's to ever listen to again, it would be Master of Puppets.
@@seanzigmund858 yes man! This is what separates MOP from Justice: the song structure and the production! The segues like on the song master of puppets, acoustic intro to battery, galloping intro riff to disposable heroes, the intro to damage inc had a dynamic & multidimensional sound that was absent to me on Justice. Although Justice was great, some songs still seemed like a demo state where they didn't reach full potential or frutiion. Something I know Cliff would be able to really change if he had his hands on them.
"Rare psychedelic rock". What? :P
master of puppets - best metallica album ever
Yeah the pacing is nearly perfect on this album. The had a similar pacing-structure on Ride the Lightning, except they ended that one on the Epic Call of Ktulu, which totally worked for that album. Here the epic instrumental is followed by the thrash-blast that is Damage Inc, which is perfect for this album. The structure of both albums is the same though, and IT WORKS! ...And Justice For All also has the same structure, basically, but it's not as apparent since that entire album is so heady, heavy, and progressive. Fast aggressive thrasher - Title song - slow chuggy song - "Ballad" - Thrashy pick me up after "Ballad" - Heavier mid-tempo song - Thrasher / Epic instrumental - Epic instrumental / Thrasher. Only the two last songs switch around between the two albums, with ...And Justice reprising the Epic-Thrasher two last songs in the structure.
This song is simply an art work, flawless. And composed by a bunch of talented guys in their early 20s.
drunk guys in their early 20s. but nevertheless, indeed genius
@@ali965 Haha! A buncha drunk hooligans writing epic opuses for shits and giggles
Neither Kirk Hammet nor Las Ulrich are talented.
@@erickarias3309 If neither were talented they wouldn't be where they were, Lars especially
@@BeatlesCentricUniverse wrong
You should do another Cliff Burton masterpiece "(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth". I was floored that someone could play the bass the way he did back in the 80s
The studio version had the typical unrefined recording quality that Metallica really evolved Metal with... but if you review this track, you MUST do a follow up or a double commentary on the song in these two ways: 1) Evaluate the studio recording for us, as you usually do, and 2) View one of the early performances of it (eg.: ruclips.net/video/Y-G4PTysacI/видео.html). Cliff didn't just compose or perform the music, Cliff WAS the music. If they were contemporaries... imagine Cliff Burton and the late, great Jimmy Hendrix on stage together. Honestly, I'm not sure how critical a drummer would have been because they could've probably played a 4 hour improvised show, just the two of them. IMHO.
he did
They played this at Cliff's funeral. Masterpiece that will live on forever.
"The Call of Ktulu" has to be the next Metallica song for reaction!
Another great one. As good of a metal voice as James, I find it difficult to say some of my favorite songs are instrumentals.
I recommend that too! Great instrumental with Cliff Burton's influences. And if you listen this, focus on what Cliff is doing in the background with the bass. Cool stuff.
I would say "The call of ktulu" (live version with the orechestra) and "To live is to die" (1988 studio version)
A criminally overlooked thing in this masterpiece is how Lars Ulrich doesn't repeat the drum lines during the first part of the song. We're all focused on the guitars, but that part of the song, and the outro, are his to shine. Their instrumentals always have that structure, there's always a place for each of them to shine.
I’ve always noticed that. One of my favorite elements of the song (except for the guitars of course, lol).
Maybe it's because Lars Ulrich's drumming on its own isn't that overwhelming.
exactly, masterpiece
I’ve never noticed that and heard this song thousands of times probably That’s bad ass
This is exactly why I've always enjoyed Lars' playing on these early albums. He does these little variations that keep listening for the drums interesting. Check it out on for example To Live Is To Die.
The way they start to layer this piece at 6:24 is just epic. I joined the Navy in 1989, and in Bootcamp, I had this song running through my head the whole time. It kept me sane.
I joined in 2017 and this song was my theme to get through. Although from what I hear it was supposed to be easier to do when I went haha
@Geriatric FecalPhiliac How are you going to tell him what happened in his own life? 😂
I actually always wondered what Metallica might have become if Cliff had lived. I think it's pretty certain they would've gone in a more progressive direction, and perhaps would have been pioneers of a progressive metal movement, years ahead of bands like Opeth. Cliff started to really embrace classical music, exploring different progressions and almost creating symphonies in metal. Perhaps Cliff would've left the band to pursue other musical directions, since I think it was clear from the Black Album that James and Lars were pretty intent on a more mainstream metal sound. It's definitely an interesting "what if" debate to hold with any metalhead.
This is a great thought experiment. James was wanting to confront some demons in his life experience and write some more emotional and introspective songs, which I really respect. However, I simply don't like Metallica post-Justice. There are some great tracks on the black album, but they're not thrash Metallica and the album for me signals the beginning of the end for the band. Those great tracks (The Unforgiven is my favorite on that album) are kind of bittersweet. So bringing Cliff into the discussion and speculating on what he would have brought to their evolving sound is super interesting.
I don't think Cliff would have been willing to stand Bob Rock.
People forget Cliff’s range of music influence. I’m not so sure he would resist the direction they went into postJustice.
As far as progressive, they went as far as they thought they could go, do that’s why they changed direction.
Their wallets were ready for a mainstream sound and so would Cliff if he lived and so would you if you were in their shoes.
They wouldn't have been as big if Cliff lived. That is for sure.
I love the fade out on this song because it doesn’t end; it’s still going and I think that’s part of it
The Call of Ktulu, Orion, To Live is to Die
It's basically a trilogy... incredibly orchestral in their composition.
And while this was Cliff's last Album, "To Live is to Die" is composed of material cliff wrote prior to his death, performed by Jason newsted
Concur that you should give a listen to "To Live is to Die"
cliff only wrote the spoken lyrik,he is not on the musik side there.
You are forgetting my fav metallica song without lyrics When hell freezes over, so underrated
The first band i ever saw inconcert was Metallica (opening for Ozzy). I was 14 years old. I was fortunate to see them with Cliff playing. Unfortunately he died about 6 months later.
Me too..I was like 16...Mindblown
Wow. Same concert, same age, in Tucson AZ. Got to see Cliff live before he passed. He was the greatest Thrash musician that ever lived.
Lucky bastard!...lmao😄😉
Same Louisville ky
I too saw that tour. It was metallicas master of puppets tour and Ozzy ultimate sun. Saw it in Charlotte. I was freshman in high school. Metallica kicked Ozzy’s ass and it was just them four standing in one spot banging out that music and banging their heads.
Master of Puppets definitely had some continuity between tracks, so the fade out makes sense when you continue listening to the tracks in order.
the way it blends into Damage Inc. makes it fitting in context of the album, but seems lazy on its own.
@@Zfrk not really. Bands do some of their albums all at once, which is why the songs sound the same.
Doug, Cliff is one of the greatest bass players that has ever lived. The solos Including the first bass solo, and the second are very classical in the melody. The best song he wrote was impromptu on the spot Called anesthesia (pulling teeth) Its a one take bass solo that is incredible. The things that man can do with a bass.
If I remember correctly there were actually many takes for Anesthesia, but every single one was different minus 1 or 2 licks. Truly an amazing player.
@@KazeAkiyama there are live clips of him playing parts of Anesthesia pre-Metallica, it's one he'd been playing and messing with for years in a live situation.
He is simply one of the greats. He is the reason why I play bass. And an aria pro bass aswell. He is my idol. The way he writes on bass is just so incredible.
"Cliff is one of the greatest bass players that has ever lived. "
I'm still curious why people say that. You have only ever herd him play in Metallica and sadly only on three albums before he died in the crash and a lot of hte iconic stuff came straight from his practice room. So did he really play better on those albums than you have ever heard anybody else play? Better than Claypool? Wooten? Bailey? Lemmy? Davey504? Newstead?
I envy you, listening to Orion for the first time. 20+ years now since I had that experience. This song has aged like a fine wine.
i was just thinking how i wish i could go back and hear it for the first time again
He's heard this song before. At 7:10 he sings the melody as it's happening. Also knows the names of the guys in the band. He was into metal before becoming a composer, 99% sure
Id love to be able to unwatch and unlisten to my most favourite and life changing media, so i could experience them for the first t ime again. Nothing better than experiencing some art that becomes your love for the first time. I love those moments.
Same, still one of my favorite songs ever.
Never get sick of it.. Put your head phones on, lay down in a close your eyes and go on the orion
I’ve always had the impression in my imagination that the fade in and out is distance closing in and opening up. I imagine an interstellar journey through the stars when I hear this song.
Same here. And it’s no mistake that Orion happens to be a star constellation.
Me.too!
I've always felt with this song that the fade in/out is sort of like the tide coming in and then going back out, and an actual beginning or ending would completely break the overall feel of the piece.
Never thought of that angle, but I like it.
Indeed.
Yeah it Orion fade sets up the Damag Inc. intro really well.
I agree with that sentiment. It wouldn't work all the time, but for a song as strong as this one, it makes it feel like the song never ends and just always exists out there in the ether....like the song is just passing us by.
@@LS1Formula That’s exactly it for me, like if it’s a sound continuum to which a window is opened and then shut down again slowly (even if it doesn’t end exactly like it started, bu that’s the feeling).
As a classical composer, you’ll find it interesting that one of Cliff Burton’s biggest influences was Bach. In fact, the intro to “Damage, Inc.” is supposed to be based on Bach’s “Come, Sweet Death.”
I'd say inspired. I remember the interview where Kirk said that Cliff showed him the intro and said 'that is inspired by Come sweet death by Bach'. Kirk listened to Bachs song and replied to Cliff that it didn't sound like that. Cliff replied, smiling 'That's great'
One last caress
When my little bro died (44yrs I was 45) this is what I played for him. We both saw Metallica live. Memories.......
My big brother loved Puppets as much as I do, he also passed (41yrs, I was 36). We also saw Metallica live together, twice. Great memories for sure. Also YNWA KonmaN - go reds!
Damn, you're killin me. My youngest brother passed at 39 and we also spent our lives at many shows including Metallica. His first was Ozzy at 13, I was 21. I raised him right 🤘
@@thedreamer4846 Thank you...I did not check in utube for a while & was somewhat worried about responses but yours made me smile with a tear. You know the pain too, I hear ya pal, even if you were a UTD fan I hear ya. Thanks for taking the time to reach out, appreciate it. It means a lot to know I am not alone & I hope you know it to. Grief is a bugger eh?
@@deanmays7133 Wow, me & my Bro 1st gig was Ozzy supporting DIO in Dublin in early '80's - you raised him right for sure. Real life & shit happenes but we always have that gig with our brothers. Nice to share that thought, perhaps both of 'em are rocking together, along with the dreamers bro & others who care to Rock! (I would like to think I will when my time comes) Peace
@Dean Mays @KonmaN YNWA - I feel your pain my friends, we share in something undeniably tragic and impossible to get over. I have learned to embrace the pain. It stays with me, and can strangely bring me comfort now. We never argued in our lives - not even once! Not even as kids! I'm just incredibly lucky to have had a bro like him.
The fade in, especially for the drums is so iconic for me and ive never heard anything like it. The fade out has always left me wanting and I believe it was absolutely intentional..no real resolve.
Genius composition.
classical composer making the "stank" face that MoP forces all new ears to make is gold. I envy anyone listening for the first time.
What's even MORE amazing is this was released in 1986 and he's never heard it till now?!
Something stank and I want some.
@@everythingoutdoors4079 now now, we all are not as lucky as you and I in having heard this for years.
I'm sure he's heard beautiful stuff he can't believe WE haven't heard of, you know? ☺️
@@jontraz5993 Good point! Right on, rock on!
I know plenty of people who are familiar with "modern" Metallica. Watching them react to some of these "originals" is priceless.
The entire slow section beginning at 6:22 is one of the coolest metal riffs ever written.
I laughed out loud when you said " Its hard to hard to tell who's being the lead at any given time." That's the beauty of James's guitar playing!
Funny you say that. Doug said he couldn't tell who was playing lead guitar during the baroque lilting part in the middle. In the original studio version of this song, all three of those guitar parts are bass guitar, each played by Cliff, then layered.
As a guitarist, I wondered for a long time how the tone of the guitars had that odd timbre. Turns out, if you hit those high notes on a bass, it sounds quite like the song. If you listen closely, you can hear James and Kirk come back in for the second guitar solo, effectively replacing the layered bass lines.
@@timothyjames3332 That's really interesting, they play it live with guitars so I always assumed... but I can hear it now. So for the "solos" then (according to the time in this video) I hear:
3:47 - Bass - Cliff
5:16 - Guitar - Kirk
6:22 - Layered harmonized bass - Cliff
8:22 - Guitar - Possibly James - kinda sounds like a James solo but I'm not sure
8:40 - Bass - Cliff
9:06 - Guitar - Kirk
@@tubeannoyYour timestamps are exactly what my ears are telling me, too. The only thing you presented that I take issue with is the "James solo". Usually when there's a rhythm guitar going, that's what Hetfield is playing. We could speculate about left/right channel until the end of time, but that speculation wouldn't have much merit, as one could simply turn their headphones around and be right. On technique, James' lead chops tend to be based around the chord structure, and don't stray too far from being able to hop back into the rhythm. People tend to label slower guitar solos as Hetfield's, but I think that's more often not the case.
Did James write and record solos in Orion? I don't know, maybe. My suspicion is that it's all Kirk, though.
More like cliff
@@timothyjames3332 Yes. On the early albums they would specifically list when James took a solo because it was so rare at the time. On MoP he's credited with two: One on the title track and one on "Orion."
I was always under the impression that James played the harmony parts, and I've read interviews where he's taken credit for them. For what it's worth, though, the official tab book shows three guitar parts, one of which is a good bit lower than the other two. Obviously tab books should be taken with the proverbial grain of salt, but it's possible that Cliff played the low part and James played the higher parts.
Otherwise @tubeannoy's analysis sounds right to me. I thought 8:22 was Kirk at first, but I could be wrong.
Everytime me and my brother drive by the place in Sweden where he died we stop and pay our respect to the guy. Once we listened to this track while going in to the parking spot and timed it perfectly to the beginning of the calm part. Very effective
The fade-in is cool, and yeah, the fade-out is probably because they just weren't sure how to end the song, but also the fade-out makes a great transition into Damage, Inc. so if you hear them both in order it does sound pretty cool
@@tristramcoffin926 That is a good point and most likely, yes, time limits on vinyl dictated song length and arrangement
To me, the song begins with the melodic bass part in the middle (the 6/8 F#, A, E melodic thing). The "end" would naturally be the part that winds down right before that. We fade in to and out of the middle of the song, as it were.
This song is, and will always be my #1 MetallicA song. It's so powerful that it doesn't need lyrics, the music speaks.
best piece of music ever written
Now you have to do "To Live is to Die", If I remember properly, Cliff wrote the main riff right before he died, and then the band took it and wrote everything around it. Also insturmental, similar feel, different pace and tempo.
This is a great choice!
Agreed!! I would also love to watch the reaction for "To Live is to Die"
my favorite Metallica instrumental piece.
I'd recommend watching Andriy Vasylenko's video about To Live is To Die, because actually it seems likely that Cliff didn't write any of the music of the song, and more likely came up with the wording of the spoken word quote.
@@IveGotAMatch im getting my info from the VH1 behind the music featuring metallica, they talked about cliff and that main riff saying he wrote it, if my memory serves me correctly.
Thank you for taking the time to rock out to Orion. As others have already stated - it’s a masterpiece. My favorite Metallica song. It never gets old and it can’t ever be played loud enough. Cliff Burton was a genius. I often wonder how the future Metallica albums made without his influence would have sounded with him. No offense to Jason or Robert. You guys rock. But….Cliff was a different kind of special.
Metallica's Master of Puppets was the first metal album ever inducted into the Library of Congress. It is so good it even gives classical composers the "metal face."
There you see I like that and I thought they're Canadian or were stopped by their customs and didn't come to Eindhoven dynamo open air that year hahaaa long ago he, gdayyy
The fade out is a way to keep one of the best riffs in rock history stuck in your head. The music doesn’t end after the track is over.
Haven't watched yet, but really looking to your reaction to Cliff's solo. Gets me in the feels every time.
Edit after viewing:
DUDE! You talked through the bas solo and didn't even notice it! Oh man, sad times. The bass solo and middle section are what people love about this tune, but mostly, it's the bass solo. Give it another listen.
One of the best instrumentals (if not the best) of all time. Long live Cliff Burton!
The fadeout in this specific song gives you the need for more, and then they kill it with a fade in with Damage, Inc. Simply a masterpiece!!!
Used to listen to this on tape while delivering auto parts. Damage Inc caused road rage.
I'm in the minority I'm sure, but Ride the Lightning is my favorite Metallica album by far. Almost every song is a gem.
The minority? MoP an RTL are considered their best!
@Monte Maxwell MoP will always be my favorite music album of all time, both musically and for personal reasons. I will say that objectively RTL is their best, as it has the best variety (heavy, fast, and commercial friendly)
Best album is ReLoad. Hands down.😉 😂
this is close second for me but ive always connected with and justice the most. cant explain it.
@@christopherhiggins2350 Because *YoU'rE UnFoRgiVeN TwoOoOoOo!!* That's my childhood right there man lol
Check out “To Live Is to Die” off of …And Justice for All. It’s the last song that’s credited to Cliff Burton and it’s also a tribute to him.
Man, I second this so hard. To Live is To Die is my top instrumental just because of the emotions that were put into the song . You can definitely feel them.
Can you imagine if Cliff got to contribute to the AJFA Album and more specifically To Live is to Die?
I second this with every fibre of my being.
The isolated bass track of this is amazing on its own. You pick up on things in the complete track after listening to it. Not gonna spoil it for anyone, but it's awesome.
How do you listen to an isolated track?
@@noodlemans I just look it up on RUclips
I like this "8D" version of Orion that's on youtube, it splits the instruments and makes them spin around your head separately if that makes sense. It allows you to focus on the bass without having to miss out on the rest of the track.
Right, the triplets after the intro in the E/G backwards power chord pump part, Cliff hits the triplet every time, James doubles it every fourth time, all of the things you can't really hear clearly on the album
You MUST check out Rodrigo y Gabriela's acoustic cover of Orion. BRILLIANT!
They are freaking INCREDIBLE! We got to see them live a couple of years ago - amazing to see that they’re flawless live too
I just watched that.
MARSHALLS???
WEE DOAN NEEED NO STEEENKIN' MARSHALLS!!!!😎
Flawless, on every level.
I remember being 13 or 14 back in the 80's and thinking that this was one of the coolest songs I had ever heard...may years later and it still is.
My favorite Metallica song. Call of Ktulu maybe a better song, but I think this is a fan favorite because it features Cliff right before the accident. Especially at 3:47 and 8:41 RIP Cliff
In my opinion Orion is the better song
@@metallicaopinionz It is the bette song, because Cliff had improved as a composer.
@@kmoecub yeah I agree such a masterpiece
Cliff's solos never disappointed.
@@GRChrzak yeah, especially in One.
Just wanted to say I really appreciate that you truly listen to the music and understand what you're hearing. Most RUclips reactions are just people pausing the music to shout "yeah this is great!" To make us metal lovers hit the like button. Great job man!
I want his ability to recognize chords, notes and music structure.
Only few lucky people with perfect pitch can do it. Most of us can still get the type of chords/notes with relative pitch.
@@terran236 Its possible to get a pseudo perfect pitch. Learn one pitch instinctually, like a C note or something, and then think relative to that note. Its difficult, but it can be done.
To help understand chord structure you can write down the riffs like r1, r2 , r2a, bridge, outro, solo etc and put slow mid fast next to them. it has helped me get a grasp of what bands are doing. I have seen a full university students breakdown of metallicas master of puppets album i think i searched for metallica's music analysis.
Gotta have the technical ear for that. I don't have it either but it's still probably the most beautiful song Metallica's ever recorded
Amazing
Cliff’s isolated bass track for this song is pretty incredible as well.
Makes me chuckle, I’ve been listening to this song close to my my entire life. Not sure how many hundreds of times I’ve listened to the sound start to finish. Kinda cool people are still discovering this song and Metallica
This sentiment makes me feel good.
Im just introduced myself to metal and from a few friends at the start of the summer. Just found this song about a month ago. Its crazy entering this new genre. Still have lots to discover
@@jdr-gd8kg enjoy the journey fellow traveler
@@jdr-gd8kg Oh i envy you the discovery, Metallica opened a new world for me when i picked up Ride the lightning in 1984, they have been with me through good times and bad ever since. I wish you all the best in your journey.
I listened to Metallica once in a while, but there was a phase in which I used to listened to metal music every day like 10 years ago, I even learned I few Metallica songs in my guitar back in the day
This is Cliffs magnum opus, his bass solos and grooves on this piece is of legend. The waltz in the middle is genius. It’s pieces like this that separates Metallica from
It’s contemporaries.
Been listening to this album for 35 years. And this tune makes me cry every fucking time 😊
It's just beautiful 🤘😊🤘
Me too man. It made Orion my favorite constellation. Every time I look up to the stars and see it, this tunes rings in my head...
God bless Cliff Burton!
Best metal album of all time and I don't see it ever being topped.
Is it that old ??? I'm just 21 years old and I'm hearing this for the first time. Ain't my favorite though, I'm not that into Metal, mostly just Rock/hard rock
I was fortunate to see Cliff with the band in concert. He was the last of the denim and leather metal, before everything turned to emo and spandex. He’s up there shredding with Randy and Dimebag now.
Because that's how death works.
Don't forget about Jeff. He's definitely not south of heaven either ;-)
And Lemmy is no hellraiser either ;-)
@Revenge Class yep without him Metallica lost the amazing musical creativity which was evident when cliff was there
This is the most ignorant boomer shit ive read in my life lmfao
@@damianb2374 lol James himself says it on one occasion on live concert in early 80s "...and the fucking spandex
..we hate em". But yeah they all wore before cliff joined.
I think Orion works best within the progression of the album. It tends to fall sort out of context. In fact Master of puppets needs to be listened to start to finish..... in my opinion! Love your videos! 🔥❤🔥
Masterpiece. A band that can play these melodies and harmonies is in another level.
Some facts about the songs: the intro is Cliff's with different layers of bass tracks and maybe an electric organ. The main riff is James' over Cliff's chord progression. The whole middle part is composed by Cliff but the guitars are recorded by James. There's a guitar solo and a bass solo in the interlude, the guitar one is probably James'. The other two solos are Kirk's.
Great video
The last solo is bass
The last solo is played by Cliff, man...
@@Shrimppizza the last one in the interlude is
@@mandreshyp6683 no, it isnt 😂
@@ionehkontehdiabo7627 in the middle section there are two solos. The first one is in F#m and it's played in guitar. The solo right after it is in E minor and starts with a huge bend. There are several harmonizations during that short solo. That's Cliff's solo. When it ends we go back to heavy guitars and a new solo by Kirk Hammett starts
To me this piece of music is like a journey in space towards Orion and it needs the climax of arriving there. The fade out gives the feeling that the journey continues and the listener never reaches Orion during the song. I would like it to have more epic ending like in Call of Kthulu to have the feeling that now I'm in the Orion and this is the end.
Orion is a constellation, you can ‘t go there, you’ll have to choose one of its stars. But I get your point. It’s a great piece.
What is also amazing is they were in their early 20s when making this album. Master of Puppets is the first metal album to be put into the national recording registry/Library of Congress...
Not really.
@@erickarias3309 actually, this is true. They were included in 2015. First metal band to be selected.
@@erickarias3309 yes really
Just wanna share this. When I was a kid learning how to play the guitar, Metallica was my greatest influence. Just hearing the harmonies on guitars really amazed me. With that said, when I saw their live version of Orion with Rob playing the bass, at the 8:41 mark of this video, that was the only time I knew that it was a BASS solo. LOL! It took me decades before knowing that it was a bass solo. Hahaha! I had to listen to the studio version again, and it is a bass solo. :) Metallica was not just a metal band, they were already geniuses during their time.
love that face when Cliff comes in with the ultimate bass groove... classic Respect & Peace
Doug, in addition to the obvious guitar, a more than good portion of the soloing you are hearing in this song is actually Cliff on bass. If you’ve never seen video of them live he plays the bass like a virtuoso guitarist.
This tune brings tears to my eyes,..the loss of such an awesome bassist still haunts me
How about "the thing that should not be",..another reference to the "call of ktulu" song
Great review... Sweet words about Cliff... I've loved this song since I was 15 in '85...
Sorry... Typo... 16 in '86... Puppets was my first Metallica album...
The thing I find the most incredible about this album, and indeed elements of the two Metallica albums before it, is just how young they were when they wrote these songs. They were barely out of their teens for 'MoP'. You would expect this kind of songwriting and musicianship from much more mature individuals, but not drunken adolescents, which is effectively what they were at the time. It is telling that they never quite replicated these songs again as they aged - Cliff must have been the key that enabled them to transcend musical greatness.
> "It is telling that they never quite replicated these songs again as they aged"
They didn't keep trying though. Only on And Justice For All (1988, the next album after MoP) and maybe Death Magnetic (2008). Other than that, they weren't even trying to make the same kind of music as in Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets in the first place.
IMO they failed at it. AJFA is somewhat worse, and Death Magnetic far worse. I'm glad they gave up on that, because i enjoy the black album and Hardwired.
I wonder how Metallica's style would evolve over the decades with Cliff Burton. Perhaps it would change considerably but still mantaining the same kind of greatness seen in RtL and MoP. Probably in a far better way, considering the experience and composing skill he would accumulate over time.
@@leandrog2785 It is certainly interesting to imagine how different Metallica would have been had Cliff lived. IMHO, they would have still grown musically and explored different avenues, but Cliff would have brought to it the "X factor" that has been sadly missing since he passed. I also recall reading an interview many years ago with one of Cliff's close friends, who claimed that Cliff harboured desires to explore different musical genres, and wouldn't necessarily have remained with Metallica long term. Certainly poses some interesting questions.
They were like 22 And 23 bro, that ain't barely out of your teens
@@nestorramirez8086 Well if you want to be pedantic, I was broadly referring to the first three albums. Also MoP may have been released in 1986, but many of the songs were written earlier. I guess it depends whether you're a glass half full or empty guy, but to me, early 20s is barely out of your teens.
@@pancakesgo7995 eh I'm 27 and have the mind of a 91 year old
whoever you are, whatever your musical background is, when you listen to this song for he first time, it just sounds good, i would say great. That is it's power.
Cliff was their "John Lennon". He did the bass solo at @8:40 and it's one of my favorites. Describing this as lovely is on point! You are totally right! Fade in's and fade out's add a real mellow start and finish to the piece, at least in my mind :)
Man, why you gotta diss Cliff like that?
Cliff also could show our younger generation....proper roach smoking technique.
Cliff em all🤟
@@VideoMask93 I see lots of parallels! The unique hippie of the group. The game changer when it came to music. And both gone too soon.
@@MetalGuyReacts To me, that's George.
No, their "John Lennon" is James. He is the key (with Lars... terrible drummer, today).
They’re all masters in their own way but Cliff was one of a kind and he really had a hand getting Metallica famous
The fade in & out actually fits into structure & pacing of the album something lost in digital age. Each song is a link in a chain and how the connect together can be musical too. On previous albums Cliff would just show Kirk what to play for harmonies, luckily on this album Cliff showed Kirk how to figure out the harmonies himself. Cliff lives on in their music!
Im pretty sure he taught James about harmonies when recording ride the lightning, not kirk
James recorded all the non-lead guitars though, including harmonies.
I was fortunate enough to see this played live in 2010. They dedicated it to Cliff and the energy in the building was absolutely other-worldly.
35 years to the day since we lost a very young legend. RIP Cliff. \m/
Cliff Burton was the only member of Metallica with classical music training, and he also had an extremely broad music taste, also having an immense appreciation for country music. All of this of course made its way into his compositions for Metallica.
I think that the most amazing part about this song is that Metallica made a 8 minute and a half song so complete that it doesn't sound over-dragged. That's why Master of Puppets is their best album. And regarding the production, the bass was turned down a lot on AJFA where the song Blackened is.
There is practically no bass throughout AJFA as a whole, even though Jason Newsted wrote “blackened”
The interesting part is the audio engineer in charge of production was overridden by Lars and blames Lars entirely on the lack of bass throughout the album. Many theorize it as a tribute from Lars and James to Cliff not to include almost any bass in the album. It’s a damn shame though, because the And Justice For Jason album on yt proves exactly why it needs to be added back in.
Yeah, Justice sounds so 'tinny'. But there are some of its tracks on which that works well with Lars's drums. Makes his hits come off like nails being driven into hardwood.
@@seanruddy1272 I really liked and justice for Jason, and the AJFA version put out by The Bass Channel but I settled on this “remaster” as my favorite bc it brought back that bass and punched up the drums in the right places
ruclips.net/video/N-OArgBcBRk/видео.html
@@teamLeon928 holy shit you’ve just opened my eyes to what is the best mix of AJFA. THANK YOU! As a bass player I’ve always wanted bass to be heard in this album, and not just some shitty attempt at what it could have possibly sounded like, this sounds like it was performed by Jason himself. Thank you so much! From one metal fan to another I appreciate this a ton.
@@seanruddy1272 read the description on the video. A lot of the tracks are Jason’s with a couple being from a “mysterious source” (my words not his 😂). He describes what he did pretty well with pulling up Jason’s bass bc James essentially is playing in the bass channel. But yeah, it’s by far my favorite to say the least
5:02 Kirk’s first solo (I thought it was a lead!)
8:21 James’s solo
8:41 Cliff’s solo - as mentioned by others already
9:06 Kirk’s solo
Kirk has two solos here
Orion is best appreciated in the context of the whole album. The next song “Damage, inc.” fades in with softly distorted bass lines from Cliff, then into a crescendo, right into hard, staccato power to finish the album with a song that is fast, heavy, and in your face.
Some commenters’ interpretations of Orion made me think of the song in a new way! The ability to infinitely loop this song, similar to the infinity of space and the universe, or that we approach, see, and leave the constellation Orion and that’s what the song demonstrates. It’s fascinating! One of my favorites to play on guitar.
about the fadeouts - to me it is like a cosmic journey where the spaceship is travelling to the far cosmos and it approaches the Orion, then the melancholic middle is being in the middle of the constellation, then the solos are coming up like being closer to the star and seeing all that violent power. then finally the spaceship travels further, and the Orion fades away... that's my take on it
Thanks for the honest review, Doug. It's a breath of fresh air to hear/see an actual musician doing a reaction video. 🙂
They were all in the 22-24 age range when they wrote this album. It's a masterpiece.
The fade out on Orion is like the curtain closing on one scene in a play, to create drama as Damage Incorporated blasts off. Damage Inc is one of my favorites for sure.
Orion is by far my favorite Metallica instrumental. Thank you for giving it a fair listen.
The fade in/fade out is like a militant march. It started before you, came, kicked your ass, rolled right over you, and continues until it fades off in the distance with the same power it started with.
I like this description a lot.
Regarding the fade in and fade out, I usually feel the same, but there is something special about this song.
The fade in and the fade out are done over the same motif, that encases the middle section, creating for me an "endless loop" feeling that certainly resonates with the name of the song and the deep, astral, introspective feelings I get from listening to it.
Orion, both as a constellation and as a mythological figure, have this "eternal cicle" and "appear and disappear" motifs. For me, the fading in and out are meant to "loop" the song into representing this.
Haven't listened to orion for sooo long now, brings me back to my teenage years. Forgot how much I love it
First Solo was Kirk Hammet second Solo was James Hetfield third Solo was Cliff Burton fourth Solo was Kirk Hammet.